Fasting lessons from Yom Kippur

This past Saturday marked Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement. I am anything but religious, yet I took this occasion as an excuse to meet family in New York for the observation.

Tradition dictates that one spends the day (from sun down on Friday to sun down on Saturday) fasting and reflecting on sins committed during the previous year. I tried to fast — though I admit I did succumb to my caffeine cravings in the morning — and attended services throughout the day.

For anyone familiar with the Jewish religion this is a time-honored tradition. Christians have Easter, Muslims have Ramadan, but for Jews, the holiest of days are Yom Kippur.

At first glance it does sound incredibly depressing. Taking a full 24-hour fast is bad enough, but spending your waking hours in services, mourning the sins committed in the past year, is utter misery.

But, that is kind of the point.

We live in an incredibly hedonistic society.  While it is true that we are hyper-connected and globalized, we too easily fall prey to apathy when it comes to the consequences of our actions and the suffering of our fellow man. It’s so easy to get caught up in classes, our smart phones, the Internet, our drama and the superficiality of our lives that we just forget about everything else.

Ours is a society that encourages constant interaction so it is an enlightening experiment to just stop for a day.

This is not about giving yourself a guilt trip for anything wrong that you might have done. It is less about seeking forgiveness and more about the realization that as humans we are less then perfect.  

Sure, you may have a great track record of volunteer work in your community, but when was the last time you considered the suffering occurring on the other side of the world? While it might be infeasible to do anything about it, just taking a moment to really recognize what else is happening to your fellow man is an opportunity to grow.

Too often we go about our lives with an artificial sympathy for others sufferings. We read the headlines in the news about floods, earthquakes and terrorist attacks and with a flash of pity move on with our lives.

So why not take one day out of 365 to self examine your place in the world?

Fasting is an important catalyst for the reflection of the day. This is a ritual seen throughout many different religions and whose benefits are extolled in the practice of yoga.

Fasting not only allows us to connect with our humanity, it also has a lot of health benefits. It offers a much-needed break for your digestive system and allows your body to rid itself of toxins that might have previously been consumed.

Take time to fast and meditate, the results might surprise you.


E-mail: danfleis@indiana.edu